Donald Trump has an exceptionally nasty habit of taking credit for things that he’s not actually done a single thing to deserve credit for, and typically this comes in the form of an Obama administration accomplishment — because if Donald J. Trump has ever been anything in all his life, it’s jealous as all get-out of his predecessor.
You combine that seething jealousy with Trump’s blatant dislike for people hued any darker than his preternaturally orange shade and you end up with some pretty ridiculous, disgusting, and downright mind-boggling shit coming out of the “president’s” mouth. Or, at least, his fingertips as he pecks out his next rage tweet.
As we spend our day today in what is supposed to be celebratory honor of the life of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Civil Rights Movement spiritual leader who left an undeniable and irreplaceable mark on history with his unrivaled peaceful yet powerful protests and a life that served as a beacon of hope in what was a hopeless world at the time, Trump is not partaking in the celebration. He has no plans to honor King’s life. Instead, he’s doing what he has always and will always do — using this opportunity to make the day entirely and completely about himself.
Because God knows he doesn’t care for anyone else being the center of attention, but he damn sure can’t tolerate the center of attention being a black man — alive or not.
So instead of letting one of his staff members pen a generic but halfway acceptable tweet about King’s legacy, Trump instead took to his account and appeared to kill two birds with one stone — diminishing the sanctity of the national holiday meant to honor and revere Dr. King, while simultaneously attempting to take away an accomplishment that began within his African American predecessor’s administration.
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“It was exactly three years ago today, January 20, 2017, that I was sworn into office. So appropriate that today is also MLK jr DAY. African-American Unemployment is the LOWEST in the history of our Country, by far. Also, best Poverty, Youth, and Employment numbers, ever. Great!” Trump wrote in a self-centered post on his Twitter account today.
It was exactly three years ago today, January 20, 2017, that I was sworn into office. So appropriate that today is also MLK jr DAY. African-American Unemployment is the LOWEST in the history of our Country, by far. Also, best Poverty, Youth, and Employment numbers, ever. Great!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2020
Now not only is this tweet disgusting selfish, tone-deaf, and chock full of thinly-veiled racist undertones — it’s fucking wrong.
It’s a lie. A big, fat, Trump lie if ever there were one.
This is far from the first time that Trump has attempted to take credit for this very accomplishment achieved by his predecessor. Back in July of last year, Donald made a strikingly similar claim regarding African American unemployment rates and his supposed hand in making that happen.
However, it was just an untrue then as it is now, and was quickly fact-checked by the Associated Press’ team of fact-checkers who explained that while it’s true that African American unemployment rates did, in fact, reach their record low during the Trump administration, it actually had nothing to do with anything Donald has done. In fact, if anything, he’s only made it worse.
The original ball to bring down unemployment rates among black Americans unsurprisingly started rolling in the Obama administration. It just so happened to reach its fever-pitch under Trump’s reign of terror and he’s certainly not going to miss the opportunity to capitalize on it.
From the Associated Press fact-check report:
It’s true that black unemployment did reach a record low during the Trump administration: 5.9 percent in May 2018. It currently stands at 6 percent.
But many economists view the continued economic growth since the middle of 2009, when Democratic President Barack Obama was in office, as the primary explanation for hiring. More important, there are multiple signs that the racial wealth gap is now worsening and the administration appears to have done little, if anything, to specifically address this challenge.
African Americans also had higher income prior to the Trump administration. A black household earned median income of $40,258 in 2017, the latest data available. That’s below a 2000 peak of $42,348, according to the Census Bureau.
The most dramatic drop in black unemployment came under Obama when it fell from a recession high of 16.8 percent in March 2010 to 7.8 percent in January 2017.”
Trump didn’t accomplish these numbers. Nor did he do what it takes to get them where they are today. He inherited them. From a black man.
To wrap things up, I’ll leave you with this strikingly perfect synopsis of Trump’s tweet by my kick-ass editor:
This racist fuck who called African countries shitholes and was once successfully sued by the DOJ for refusing to rent to black people wants you to have a happy MLK Day, everyone. https://t.co/aZw5MpaEoV
— The Last Living Drewbear In The Wild 👉🤛 (@infuzi0n) January 20, 2020
Don’t ever forget what a piece of shit this man really and truly is.
Featured image via Political Tribune gallery
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